[3.5] Arcane Duelist Entry

[Thurbane]

Just mulling over some ideas for Arcane Duelist entry (and yes, I know, it's a bit of a gimped PrC).

I'm thinking:

Battle Dancer 1/Duskblade 1/Warblade 4/Arcane Duelist

or

Battle Dancer 1/Hexblade 3/Crusader 1/Hexblade +1/Arcane Duelist

Any thoughts?

Battle Dancer is mainly for skill reqs...

Cheers - T

[Tvtyrant]

Since the class grants accuracy and charisma to ac I would focus on Snow Dance for charisma to hit, paladin 2 for incredibly saves, and try to get some for of sneak attack. Getting craven will let you eat your weapons damage but more than make it back. The Dashing Swordsman, basically.

An abusive alternative is to use the fact that your weapon is not limited by the abilities to a rapier, take a big two hander and pump strength. Add the same amount to accuracy as you take away via power attacking, so you simply get free damage. Anything pumping PA will turn this into even more free gains, acting like shocktrooper but with less of a drawback.

[Thurbane]

Sorry, should have said, I specifically want to avoid Bard, and I want good BAB classes for entry so I can get in at 7th.

[xyianth]

You basically need to pick a total of 6 full BAB classes that get you balance and perform as class skills, 1st level arcane spellcasting, and the Dodge, Mobility, and Weapon Finesse feats.

Here is a list of the +1 BAB base classes I am aware of:

Battle Dancer 1 gets you balance and perform as class skills and Cha to AC.
Swashbuckler 1 gets you balance as a class skill and weapon finesse as a bonus feat.
Mariner 1 (from dragonlance Legend of the Twins) gets you a balance as a class skill and a bonus feat that can be dodge, mobility, or weapon finesse. (among others)
Hexblade 4 gets you spellcasting, dark companion, mettle, arcane resistance, and a curse 1/day.
Duskblade 3 gets you arcane channeling and spellcasting.
Paladin 4 gets you Cha to saves, lay on hands, and turn undead. It can also get spellcasting via sword of the arcane order.
Mystic wildshaping Ranger gets you wildshaping, an animal companion, and spellcasting via sword of the arcane order.
Wolf totem lion spirit Barbarian 2 gets you improved trip, whirling frenzy, pounce, and fast movement.
Crusader/Warblade gets you maneuvers and stances.
A hit and run Fighter gets you bonus feats and dex to damage when sneak attacking.
Samurai 2 (from OA) gets you a bonus feat based on your clan and exotic weapon proficiencies.
Generic Warrior (from UA) gets bonus feats (or features) and a customizable skill list.
Rokugan Ninja gets 1d6 sneak attack, and ninja dodge.

You can technically get Mobility from a magic armor. Feycraft weapons can be used as if you had Weapon Finesse, but may or may not count for prerequisite purposes. Depending on your race, some of the racial paragon classes are full BAB as well.

I'm inclined to say silverbrow human battle dancer 1/barbarian 2/swashbuckler 1/mariner 1/duskblade 1 is the best entry since it lets you take power attack and cleave at 1st level, knock-down at 3rd level, and mobility at 6th level. This lets you enter arcane duelist at 7th level, but it also qualifies you to take warrior skald for bardic music. This can then be used to get dragonfire inspiration and snowflake wardance later in the build. If you can grab sneak attack from somewhere, staggering strike + craven + knock-down + improved trip is very, very effective.

[The Viscount]

If you are only using Battle Dancer for the skills, consider replacing it with a single level of Harmonius Order Paladin. It grants perform as a class skill. Then take the skilled city dweller ACF to trade ride for tumble.

The same goes for Darksong Knight Fighter, but requires 2 levels.

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

Arcane Duelist (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/re/20030224a), for those wondering.

Harmonious Knight Paladin (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/we/20060327a) (of Freedom/Tyranny/Slaughter) 2 for Perform would be an ideal choice, plus you could use wands of Paladin spells (Rhino's Rush, which is still a swift action per Rules Compendium). Consider a third level in that to get Divine Might.

I would go with Duskblade 1 for the arcane spellcasting prerequisite.

That leaves you two or three more levels of full BAB to qualify for Arcane Duelist. Warblade is certainly a good choice, as is Crusader, Fighter, or just about anything you want.